The government came out Thursday with a
two-pronged effort to get new taxes.

On the one hand, the Ministerio de Hacienda
warned of the impact of a credit downgrade by
Standard & Poor's. Then the same ministry
unveiled the draft of a proposed law that would
restrict government spending, if passed.

The ministry said that Standard and Poor´s said
the probability was high that there would be
a new reduction in the country's credit
rating in the next 18 months. The rating agency
said that Costa Rica's rating was now BB- with a
negative perspective.

Another rating agency, Fitch, affirmed the
country's unsecured foreign- and local-currency
bonds at BB+ in January. That rating on a
different scale is classified by Fitch as
non-investment grade speculative.

Ratings are important, particularly for a
country like Costa Rica where half the annual
budget is borrowed money. A poor credit rating
means high interest rates demanded by lenders.

Helio Fallas, first vice president and minister
of Hacienda, predicted big repercussions
from the credit rating cut. Standard and Poor's
said the change in the rating reflected the
continuing deterioration of the country's

financial
situation, citing continued expenses and the absence of fiscal reform.

The Luis Guillermo Solís administration has been
trying to win passage of a legislative package
containing new taxes since the president took
office. There is resistance in among lawmakers.

Also Thursday the ministry presented a draft
of a bill that was designed to control the
increase in the central government expenditures.

The draft was presented for discussion.

The announcement also pointed out that the
legislature has been performing in an
unconstitutional manner. The ministry cited
Article 179 of the Costa Rican Constitution
which says budgetary expenses of the executive
branch cannot be increased if there is no
evidence cited of new income to support them.

This article has been widely disregarded. The
draft contains a proposal that future
expenditures be accompanied by an explanation of
their long-term sustainability.

Many lawmakers have been critical of the
executive branch seeking new taxes without any
effort to make significant budget cuts.

Right now the package for new taxes is held up
in committee.

The new bridge will be
six lanes instead of
the current four and designed to last for 75
years, said officials.

Ministerio de Obras
Públicas y Transportes graphic

Work resumed on
autopista bridge over Río Virilla

By the A.M. Costa Rica
staff

Work has begun again on the Río Virilla bridge
that carried the Autopista General Cañas west of
San José. This is the infamous platina bridge
that has defied repairs since 2009.

The $14 million project involves strengthening
the existing bridge and adding a third lane on
each side. The money comes from the Banco
Centroamericano de Integración Económica.

For the next eight months, the work will be
under the bridge and there will be no
interruption of traffic, promised Carlos
Villalta Villegas, minister of Obras
Públicas y Transportes. The entire job is
expected to take a year.

The contractor
suspended work after completing about 90 percent
of the reinforcements under the bridge. There
was a dispute over additional expenses.
Basically work crews built another bridge
underneath.

The bridge began developing cracks in 2009 and a
metal plate was installed over an expansion
joint, hence the name platina.

The plate refused to stay flat after a handful
of repair attempts. At one point the then-public
works minister said a new bridge would have to
be built. The consensus was that the bridge
structure was too flexible.

The bridge has a key role in plans for
additional highways coming from the capital.

The contents of
this Web site are copyrighted by Consultantes Río Colorado S.A.
2016 and may not be reproduced anywhere without permission.
Abstracts and fair use are permitted. Check HERE for more
details

A.M.
Costa Rica's professional directory is where
business people who wish to reach the
English-speaking community may invite
responses. If you are interested in being
represented here, please contact the
editor.

restored over 17,000
dental implants since 1980. The
Dr. Marco Muñoz Cavallini Dental
Clinic, is recognized as one of
the best practices in Dental
Reconstruction, Dental Implant
placement and Cosmetic Dentistry
in Costa Rica and the World. For
more information, visit us today
at: marcomunozcavallini.com

U.S. Income Tax
ServicesMarlene B.
Summers,
Tax Accountant
Licensed by the I.R.S.

Marlene B. Summers

U.S.
citizens, plan now
for your tax year.
Let me help you pay
only the tax
you must!
Take advantage of
the foreign earned
income exclusion.
If your filing is
not up-to-date, the
Streamlined Filing
Procedure can be
used to mitigate
penalties.
Including
disclosure of
foreign corporations
to avoid future
problems.

File current
or past due FBARs
with no penalties to
meet IRS
requirements.
File your current or
amended returns.
23 Years Experience
Competitive ratesPhone (506)
2289-6590 or (506)
8750-2316Email: marlene.summers@gmail.com

* Colinas
del Sol is a fenced
and gated
project in a
quiet area.
* There are 88 clear
titled lots.
* Mountain areas
with great views.
* Gently sloping
level areas ideal
for hobby farms,
gardening, fruit
tree orchards.
* Quiet place to get
away from the busy
city and beach
crowds.
* All lots have
gravel roads to
them, water and
electricity at each.
* Lots are 5,000 sq.
meters or larger,
starting at only
$39,000 USD , and
many can be combined
for those wanting a
larger area for
their chosen
passion, be it a
hobby horse farm or
retirement haven.
* Located in
Libertad,
Guanacaste,
Northwest Pacific
area of Costa Rica.
* 20 minutes to the
Liberia
International
Airport
* 15 minutes to the
Pacific Beaches
* 10 minutes to
Medical Facilities
* 25 minutes to the
Liberia Hospital
* 5 minutes to
Papagayo Golf
& Country Club Contact Jim
Day
Email: JimDay50@aol.com
or Phone: 001
517 484-3675.
Click Here: www.colinasdelsolcr.com

8596-8/27/15

Zika battle now a national
emergency

By the A.M. Costa
Rica staff

The health ministry and the national emergency
commission declared a national emergency over
the zika virus Thursday.

The decree involved mainly 31cantons and also
directed at dengue and chikungunya, other
viruses carried by the same Aedes Aegypti
mosquito vector.

Fernando Llorca, minister of Salud,
characterized the declaration as preventative.
He said the country has the infrastructure,
human resources, training and experience to
handle mosquito-borne diseases.

The cantons are: San José Central, Santa Ana,
Desamparados, Alajuelita and Pérez Zeledón, in
the province of San José; Alajuela Central,
Atenas and Orotina, in the province of
Alajuela; Sarapiquí in Heredia; Liberia,
Carrillo, Santa Cruz, Nicoya, Cañas, La Cruz
and Abangares in the province of
Guanacaste; Puntarenas Central and the
districts of Cóbano, Lepanto and
Paquera, Esparza, Montes de Oro, Garabito,
Parrita, Quepos, Golfito, Osa and Corredores
in the province of Puntarenas; Limón Central,
Pococí, Guácimo, Siquirres and Matina in the
province of Limón, and Turrialba in the
province of Cartago.

The emergency declaration is more technical
than a call to action. Just about every
government agency, national and local, are
working to eliminate mosquitoes and places
where they breed. Even the schools have
programs to do so.

The declaration does allow the emergency
commission and the ministry to collect money
from private sources and to move budgeted
money around to handle the emergency.

The declaration also provides the legal
framework to pressure businesses and
homeowners to take action against mosquitoes.

The declaration was prompted by the discovery
that two women in Sámara have been infected by
the virus. There has been a lot of
fumigating activity on the Nicoya peninsula
and in the community of Nicoya. There also has
been extensive fumigating in Nosara where a
Texas man might have contracted the virus in
December.

The presence of zika has tourism operators
nervous because of the potential impact on
visitors.

Meanwhile, fear of the zika virus is intense
in Brazil because of its apparent link to a
birth defect. After a fact-finding mission in
Brazil, Margaret Chan, who heads the World
Health Organization, said the situation "can
get worse before it gets better."

Dr. Chan called the zika virus a much bigger
menace than the ebola epidemic in West Africa
that killed more than 11,000 people, given the
magnitude of zika's spread and its possible
link to microcephaly, a birth defect involving
brain growth that leaves babies at risk of a
host of long-term developmental issues.

Anne Schuchat of the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention and Anthony Fauci of
the National Institutes of Health stressed the
need for special funding to continue research
on the disease, work on a vaccine against it,
and help U.S. states and territories prepare
for the virus's spread. They spoke before
committees in both the U.S. House of
Representatives and Senate.

"We need to prepare to respond in Puerto
Rico," Dr. Schuchat said. The zika virus is
circulating in Puerto Rico, which is a U.S.
territory. "We need the rest of the U.S. to be
ready, because travelers will be returning
from these affected areas. And we need to work
with international partners on the ground to
learn as much as we can so that we can protect
Americans."

Forty million to 50 million people travel
between the U.S. and Latin America each year,
and the type of mosquito that carries the zika
virus lives in much of the United States.
While U.S. public health officials expect some
transmission in the southern part of the U.S.,
they don't expect zika to be a major worry.
Most of the cases of zika in the U.S. have
been in people who traveled to the affected
regions. The Centers is investigating sexual
transmission and has confirmed that a woman in
Texas got the virus from a male sexual
partner.

Deadline set for expressing
political views

By the A.M. Costa
Rica wire services

Readers are invited to express their
preferences for party nominations and the
elections for U.S. president, national level
lawmakers and other officials.

This newspaper will publish these preferences
as letters through Friday, Oct. 14. The U.S.
general elections are held on Tuesday, Nov. 8.

Each letter should be of reasonable length and
free standings in that it should not dispute
the comments of a previously published letter.
The letter should make and support its own
arguments. Letters will be published with the
name of the writer and the community in which
the writer lives.

Sometime in the third week of October, A.M.
Costa Rica will publish its election
endorsement and have the last word. There will
be no further campaign letters published.

Those supporting a candidate are reminded that
U.S. voters in Costa Rica need some lead time
to cast their ballots and send them in to be
counted.

News
from the Spanish-language pressTranslated
into English

Costa Rica Report news feeds are disabled on archived pages.

Have you seen
these stories?From A.M. Costa
Rica(Text version is HERE!)

There is another alert out for high seas for the
weekend. The big waves are accompanied by high winds.

The national emergency commission joined with the
University de Costa Rica experts in issuing the warning.
The summary cited high pressure in the North Atlantic
and over North America for generating the heavy seas.

In the north Pacific of Guanacaste, the waves are
expected to reach four meters by Sunday, said the
summary. And wind gusts were predicted to be
at least 75 kph or about 47 mph.

The
university experts are from its Centro de Investigación
en Ciencias del Mar y Limnología.

The size of the waves are diminishing further south on
the Pacific coast, but the winds were predicted to
continue to be strong.

On the Caribbean coast the waves are expected to range
as high a 2.5 meters and begin to return to normal by
Monday.

The winds were expected to be weak.

There were small boat warnings issued for both coasts.

Wetter
La Niña expected to follow the current record El Niño

By the A.M. Costa Rica staff

Weather experts say the current El Niño conditions that
have caused drought in Guanacaste and on the Pacific
coast probably will dissipate by July.

But there also is a good chance that the exiting El Niño
will be followed closely by La Niña.

The current El Niño is the strongest ever recorded. And
other Central American countries also have felt the
drought.

Central Panama is currently suffering the most severe
three-year drought in its history, according to the
Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute. 2013 to 2015
constitute the driest three consecutive years recorded
on Barro Colorado Island, in the middle of the Panama
Canal, where data has been collected for almost a
century, the institute said.

El Niño generates drought in Central America, but La
Niña is expected to be very wet. Both are products of
changes in the distant Pacific. La Niña does not always
follow El Niño, but the weather experts see signs that
it will this year.

“El Niño is a natural phenomenon that occurs every two
to seven years, and is created through a shift in wind
and ocean circulation. In normal, non-El Niño
conditions, Pacific trade winds near the equator blow
from east to west, moving warm surface water with them.
During an El Niño, trade winds move from west to east
from Southeast Asia to South America moving warm water
to the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean. The warm ocean
water evaporates, adds moisture to the air and falls as
precipitation over nearby regions.”

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration agency
keeps close track of the world's weather from space. The
agency notes that the Niños do not create more moisture.
They just move it around.

There also is a good chance that a growing La Niña will
influence the Atlantic hurricane season, said Goddard.
La Niña is characterized by colder surface water near
South America. La Niña can also spur abnormal weather
patterns across the world, it adds.

Science is an incremental business, as the long voyage of
the Tarkhan Dress shows.

This fitted, pleated bit of linen, was found by
archaeologists in 1913. It was lying among a pile of
discarded linens left behind at a ransacked tomb in an
ancient Egyptian cemetery about 50 kilometers from Cairo.

It found its way to the Victoria and Albert Museum's
Textile Conservation Workshop where it sat until 1977 when
workers begun to painstakingly clean the fragile piece of
cloth.

What they discovered was that this piece of cloth was
tapered, and pleated around the neck and sleeves.

From its discovery, the Tarkhan Dress stood out as one of
the oldest examples of sewn, tailored and fitted clothing
ever found.

"The garment had clearly been worn in life," according to
Rosalind Hall from the museum, writing back in the 1970s,
"because it was found inside-out, as it very well might
have been after having been pulled over the head with
distinct signs of creasing at the elbows and under the
armpits.

But was it the oldest? That wasn't clear until this
week when radiocarbon dating definitively placed the age
of the dress at somewhere between 5,000 and 5,400 years
old.

The research was reported in the February edition of the
Antiquities Journal and authored by Alice Stevenson,
curator of University College of London’s, Petrie Museum
of Egyptian Archaeology, and Michael Dee of the University
of Oxford.

Previous dating had set the age of the dress in a broad
1,000-year range that wasn't narrow enough to say that it
was,

Petrie
Museum of Egyptian Archaeology photo

The Tarkhan Dress courtesy of Petrie Museum of
Egyptian Archaeology, University College of
London.

in fact, the oldest tailored garment ever found.

But the new tests on a single two-centimeter-long piece of
thread were done in 2015, and these came back with the
more precise answer.

Vacation, travel and
hospitality

Largest art gallery
in GuanacasteDrop in to see
some of Costa Rica's finest art
at the largest gallery in Guanacaste.

The Hidden Garden
Art Gallery near the Liberia airport is a great
place to find quality remembrances of Costa Rica
to take home or to decorate your home or office
in Costa Rica. We also offer commissioned
pieces so you can create your own unique
masterpiece to cherish forever. With more
than 60 artists on exhibit and fine art in 15
rooms full of paintings, prints, sculptures, and
diverse artistic expressions, we are easy to
locate just 5 kms west of the Daniel Oduber
International Airport. Visit our Web site at

The
Relocation/Retirement tour with the
*HIGHEST SUCCESS RATE
OF RELOCATION* (as reported by the moving
companies)
Visit many rental options to actually experience
the price/amenity options available in more of the
areas chosen by Expats for security, comfort, and
quality of life.

Meet many Expats
who are willing to share their experiences and how
the tour has value long after the “lust” wears
off.

Looking for easy booking process for a smooth Costa
Rica trip? We customize wonderful trips
to Costa Rica. We offer you our wealth of
knowledge for a great experience . . . a trip of a
lifetime!!!

* FAMILY VACATIONS.
Our travels take into account the different ages of
your family enjoy the most from your Family
vacations. Click HERE!

* GROUP TOURS.
Whether for a church group, couple of friends, Scout
troop or a family group. We provide excellent
quality service in your Group Tours. Click HERE!

* EDUCATIONAL
TOURS. Tours for universities to schools to
elementary schools. We have professionals to help
you discover the secrets of Costa Rica in a fun way.
Costa Rica Educational Tours. Click HERE!

Will Costa Rica
Retirement Work For You?
Find out for yourself on Live In Costa Rica
Tours
When you visit Costa Rica, you'll want to discover
what you need to know to make the right
choice about moving to this tropical
paradise. Our familiarization tours have won
hard-earned credentials that prove general
excellence and the right focus. These are
the only retirement tours that are licensed and
approved by the Costa Rican government and tourism
institute (ICT). In 2006 we were featured on
the NBC Today Show and World News. In 2010,
we won the prestigious Latin America-Asia
Travel Excellence Award for the Best and Most
Unique Tour in Latin America.

* Discover how to make the right
choices about moving here
* Find out how to live affordably
* See how other expats live. Meet other
expats who have made
the move.
* Access the country's affordable
health care system
* Informative two-day seminar given by
local experts in their
relevant
fields.
* Tours led by Christopher Howard,
34-year resident, citizen,
and
the author of "The New Golden Door to Retirement
and
Living in Costa Rica – the Official Guide to
Relocation”

Here's reasonable
medical care
Costa Rica's world class medical specialists are at your
command. Get the top care for much less than U.S. prices.
It is really a great way to spend a vacation. See our list
of recommended professionals HERE!amcr-prom

COSTA RICA
SOLARSOON with
the
coming
of new power company
regulations, we'll
be installing PV
(photo voltaic) for
solar electricity.
Yes, at last!
* PV systems: we use
Enphase
micro-inverters.
More flexible. Add
panels whenever you
like. More reliable
than any other
system and fully
guaranteed!

NOW is
the time to install
our new
super-efficient solar
hot water! New model
for condos

BUY NOW! Your
solar
hot water system, so
in three months, we
can calculate a lower
install price for your
PV system.
Perfect for homes and
hotels. Save up to 40%
of your electric bill.

Will be Available March 15,
2-bedroom, 2-bath
fully-furnished house inside
gated property, Internet,
Wifi, cable TV. $700 +
utilities. Located in Santa
Barbara de Heredia. More
information to my email: organicfarmhouserental@gmail.com.

Spectacular rentals
are available for low weekly
prices on
SellMyTimeshareNow.com at
resorts such as Bahia
Turquesa Residences and
Villas Sol Playa Hermosa in
Guanacaste. We have

1- to
3-bedroom ocean and garden
view timeshares available and
most offer air conditioning,
cable TV, fully equipped
kitchens, and relaxing
hammocks on private balconies.
Enjoy the unique combination
of seclusion and convenience
as all resorts listed on our
site are close to popular
Costa Rican attractions and
downtown

centers, but are
surrounded in lush, tropical
forest. Villas are also
available for sale in our
inventory, so you can enjoy
yearly vacations to this
mesmerizing rainforest
paradise. Please visit our
rental inventory HERE!
or
call
us toll free at
877-815-4227, International:
603-516-0200. Email: info@sellmytimesharenow.com

8766-7/30/16

Tropical
Homes
of Costa Rica is offering the best
selection of vacation
homes, condos and
long-term rental homes in
Playa Flamingo, Playa
Potrero and Playa
Brasilito on the
Pacific Gold Coast of
Guanacaste. A wide
selection of private
residencies is providing
an excellent choice
for your stay in this
beautiful part

Boutique quality mountain
homes for rent located on a
small horse ranch on the
slopes of the Barva Volcano,
Heredia Province. The homes
have stunning views of Costa
Rica's Central Valley.
Located at 7,300-foot
altitude, our ranch borders
the Braulio Carrillo
National Park and the homes
are hiking distance to the
Barva Volcano crater lake.
We offer various rental
options for our 1- and
2-bedroom homes. Contact us
at Ajsanch783@AOL.COM
for more details.

hotels,
restaurants,
casinos,
city government, national
registry. $650 per month plus
electricity. ½ month security
deposit. No lease. The
larger apartments are $650 per
month. They have larger
bedrooms, living rooms and
kitchens. It would be best for
the prospective tenants to
visit

U.S. President Barack Obama says although the U.S.-led
effort to combat Islamic State has made progress, the
fight remains difficult and he has instructed his security
team to ramp up efforts.

"This is a tough situation with a lot of moving parts,"
Obama said after meeting with top security officials at
the State Department Thursday.

Obama was updated on efforts to counter Islamic State
during a meeting with senior officials from the White
House, State Department, intelligence community, Defense
Department and Treasury Department. It is the latest
in a series of updates on the multi-pronged U.S. campaign
to counter Islamic State.

“The situation in Iraq and Syria is one of the most
complex the world has seen in recent times,” said Obama.

However, after intensifying efforts that were yielding
results in the last few months, the president said the
U.S. had succeeded in squeezing Islamic State’s core in
Iraq and Syria.

Obama said the U.S. will also continue efforts to push
back Islamic State as it reaches beyond Iraq and Syria
into countries where there is political chaos and turmoil,
such as in Libya.

“Today I directed my team to continue accelerating this
campaign on all fronts,” Obama said.

In recent months the intensification effort has included
the use of additional U.S. special expeditionary forces to
carry out raids, free hostages, capture Islamic State
leaders and gather intelligence.

The flow of foreign fighters to Syria is slowing, Islamic
State is having a difficult time replenishing its ranks,
morale sinking and civilians are rejecting them, Obama
said. “They’re not winning over hearts and mind, and
they’re under severe pressure.”

Critical to the effort, Obama said, is the implementation
of a cease-fire agreement he reached with Russian
President Vladimir Putin earlier this week. The U.S. has
said the fighting in Syria between troops loyal to
President Bashar al-Assad and rebels fighting to oust him
has allowed Islamic State to flourish amid the chaos and
instability.

But Obama seems cautious about whether the cease-fire deal
will hold up.

“If implemented, and that’s a significant if, this
cessation could reduce the violence and get more food and
aid to Syrians who are suffering and desperately
needed. It could save lives.”

The White House has accused Putin of fueling the civil war
by helping to prop up the Assad regime with air strikes
targeting opposition rebels.

The cessation agreement calls for an end to attacks and
aerial bombardment and for the flow of humanitarian aid to
areas under siege.

"A lot of that is going to depend on whether the Syrian
regime, Russia, and their allies live up to their
commitments," Obama said. "The coming days will be
critical, and the world will be watching."

Kansas factory shooting
leaves 3 dead and 20 hurt

By the A.M. Costa Rica wire
services

At least three people were killed and up to 20 were
wounded Thursday in a series of shootings in and near a
factory in the Midwestern U.S. state of Kansas.

Law enforcement officials said the gunman was among those
killed in the shootings, which occurred at several
locations near the city of Hesston.

The gunman, described as an employee at Excel Industries,
which makes lawn mower products, was killed by the
authorities, Sheriff T. Walton said.

The sheriff said a shooting also took place in the plant
parking lot and two other locations nearby.

The shootings came less than a week after authorities said
a man opened fire at several locations in Kalamazoo,
Michigan, leaving six people dead and two severely
wounded.

Walton said a lot was still unknown about the Kansas
attacks. He did not explicitly say whether the shootings
were related.

"I don't have a lot of answers,'' he said.

Hesston is a community of about 3,700 residents about 35
miles north of Wichita.

Apple asks U.S. magistrate
to reverse hacking order

By the A.M. Costa Rica wire
services

Apple has filed a motion in court asking a federal
magistrate to reverse her order that the company help the
FBI hack into a killer's locked iPhone.

The computer giant rejected the government's request to
create new software that would allow law enforcement
officials to break into the iPhone 5c belonging to Syed
Rizwan Farook, who along with his wife, Tafsheen Malik,
killed 14 people in San Bernardino, California, last year.

In court briefs filed Thursday, lawyers for Apple argued
that the government's request "creates an unprecedented
burden on Apple and violates Apple's First Amendment
rights against compelled speech."

Apple has said the FBI is asking for what amounts to a
back door around the company's security measures, and
that, in the wrong hands, in the future that software
would make countless Apple users vulnerable to searches of
their phones.

"No court has ever authorized what the government now
seeks, no law supports such unlimited and sweeping use of
the judicial process, and the Constitution forbids it,''
the company's lawyers said.

In Washington Thursday, the head of the FBI acknowledged
that forcing Apple to help investigators access the locked
iPhone would set a legal precedent, and he could not
promise that it would be the only time the bureau would
request such help.

James Comey called the standoff with the company "the
hardest problem I've seen in government."

The dispute is the latest to showcase the frustrations of
law enforcement officials who complain that newer
encryption methods used by companies like Apple make it
harder to carry out investigations involving the use of
technology by criminal suspects.

Apple strengthened encryption of its phones in 2014 amid
increased public concern about digital privacy.

Front-runner Trump faces
criticism from competition

By the A.M. Costa Rica wire
services

Real estate billionaire Donald Trump took center stage
again at a crucial Republican debate in Texas Thursday,
with Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida and Sen. Ted Cruz of
Texas looking to curb the electoral momentum of the
front-runner.

Rubio was on the attack against Trump as the nationally
televised debate began. Again and again, the Florida
lawmaker brought up the businessman's history of hiring
immigrants who are in the country illegally to work on his
properties.

Joining in, Cruz criticized Trump for suggesting he alone
had discovered the issue of illegal immigration.'

The flamboyant Trump, who has never held elective office,
has won three straight primary election contests in New
Hampshire, South Carolina and Nevada. This debate preceded
next Tuesday's party primaries and caucuses in 12 states,
the single biggest day so far in the months-long,
state-by-state races to pick the Republican and Democratic
party presidential candidates.

An online Bloomberg Politics poll released Thursday found
Trump, a twice-divorced New Yorker, with 37 percent of the
vote in seven Southern states, home to some of the
nation's most conservative voters.

Both Rubio and Cruz sharpened their attacks on Trump in
recent days, with Rubio contending that Trump's "Make
America Great Again" campaign slogan is empty rhetoric
without many specific policy proposals.

"The vast and overwhelming majority of Republicans do not
want Donald Trump to be our nominee," Rubio said
Wednesday, suggesting that Trump has won only because the
Republican opposition to him has been splintered.

Two other candidates, Ohio Gov. John Kasich and former
neurosurgeon Ben Carson, remained in the race and were on
the debate stage, but it was the first candidate face-off
without former Florida governor Jeb Bush, who dropped out
after a disappointing fourth-place finish last weekend in
South Carolina.

Cruz, a conservative agitator in Washington against
Republican and Democratic leaders, on Wednesday attacked
Rubio and Trump as Washington dealmakers. He said Rubio
had collaborated with Democrats on immigration policy
changes that Congress ultimately abandoned, while Trump
has made campaign donations to Democrats in past elections
and at times supported their policies.

Cruz is looking to win his home state of Texas Tuesday and
do well in other nearby states in the southern part of the
country. But surveys show Republicans favoring Trump in
those states and pulling close to Cruz in Texas. Rubio
also faces a key contest in the southeastern state of
Florida, his home state, March 15, the same day Kasich is
on the ballot with the other candidates in Ohio, the
Midwestern state he governs.

As he celebrated his victory this week in Nevada, Trump
suggested to supporters he could take a commanding lead
for the Republican nomination with more victories in
March, when voters will pick hundreds of delegates to the
party's national nominating convention in July.

"It's going to be an amazing two months," Trump said. "We
might not even need two months, folks, to be honest."

Trump has predicted he will face off with former U.S.
secretary of State Hillary Clinton, the leading Democratic
presidential contender, in November's national election to
replace President Barack Obama, whose eight-year tenure in
the White House ends in January.

Mrs. Clinton has won two of the three Democratic state
contests over her remaining rival, Sen. Bernie Sanders of
Vermont, a self-described democratic socialist. Mrs.
Clinton, the country's top diplomat from 2009 to 2013, is
favored in Saturday's primary election in the Atlantic
coastal state of South Carolina, and the two are battling
in 11 states on Tuesday.

National
Aeronautics and Space Administration
photo

Astronaut Scott Kelly made this
inspection on the International Space Station
in November.

After a year on
space stationU.S. astronaut returning home

By the A.M. Costa Rica wire
services

The first International Space Station crew to spend almost
a year in space is about to return to Earth.

As U.S. astronaut Scott Kelly levitated gently in the
middle of a room with walls covered in equipment, cables,
scientific instruments and several high-end cameras, he
talked about his life on board the International Space
Station and the prospects of much longer space missions.

"I'd like for the legacy of this flight to be that we can
decide to do hard things, and hard things that will take
us farther away from the Earth, and this is one of them,”
he said. “And I'm hopeful, and I think we will learn a lot
about longer-duration space flight and how will it take us
to Mars someday."

The most difficult aspects of living in space, Kelly said,
are the lack of gravity and the lack of running water. Not
surprisingly, the first thing he wants to do when he gets
home is to jump in his pool.

The astronaut said he feels very good physically, but
admitted that it might be a subjective impression.

Asked about the psychological difficulties, Kelly said the
only thing he really misses is physical contact with his
family.

"I don't know if I'd necessarily call it the psychological
aspect, but there's certainly, you know, a loss of
connection with the folks on the ground that you care for
and love and you want to spend time with. That, I think,
is a challenge," he said.

The purpose of the year-long experiment is to collect data
to help astronauts prepare for deep space missions, such
as a visit to Mars. When Kelly returns to Earth,
scientists will compare his physical data to that of his
twin brother, now-retired National Aeronautics and Space
Administration astronaut Mark Kelly.

What has Scott Kelly learned from his time in space?

For future long-term missions, he said, the living
quarters would have to be much better designed.

"On a trip to Mars, we're not going to have this much
space, obviously,” he said. “You're going to be in much
tighter quarters. You're going to live, you're going to
use the restroom, you're going to exercise, all within,
you know, a few square meters of one another. It's not
going to be like science fiction spaceship going to Mars."

But a trip to Mars is possible in the near future, Kelly
said.

"After being here for so long, that's one thing I
definitely realize that, you know, if we can dream it, you
know, we can do it if we really want to," he said.

Kelly and his Russian counterpart, Mikhail Kornienko, are
scheduled to land at Baikonur cosmodrome in Kazakhstan
Tuesday.

U.S. High Court will hear
Texas abortion law appeal

By the A.M. Costa Rica wire
services

The U.S. Supreme Court could either affirm or set back
abortion rights this year, depending on how the justices
rule on a restrictive law enacted two years ago in Texas
that has led to the closing of more than half of that
state’s abortion clinics.

Only eight justices will hear arguments Wednesday in the
case of Whole Women’s Health versus Texas after one chair
was left empty by the recent death of justice Antonin
Scalia, a conservative who the law’s supporters believe
would have sided with them.

The remaining justices are evenly divided between those
who lean conservative and those who lean liberal, with at
least two of them sometimes serving as swing votes.

But the real question in this case is not the legality of
abortion, which some conservative justices may oppose, but
to what degree a state can impose restrictions on the
practice.

Marcela Howell is executive director of In Our Own Voice,
a black women’s advocate group that has filed an amicus
brief supporting the challenge to the Texas law. She says
it puts an undue burden on poor women who cannot afford to
travel long distances to a clinic, especially since Texas
is one of 32 states that has rejected the use of federal
government-provided Medicaid funds for abortion.

She said, "If they are under Medicaid they are not able to
use Medicaid health insurance to cover abortion care,
which adds the additional burden of figuring out how they
are going to pay for an abortion.”

Ms. Howell says the law is a thinly veiled attempt to
undermine the right to abortion established by the court
in the 1973 Roe versus Wade decision.

“Politicians should not have a right to put up those kind
of barriers to women seeking what is a constitutionally
protected health care service,” she said.

A study released last month by the Texas Policy Evaluation
Project documented some of the negative impacts of the
abortion law on women, especially those who are poor or
live in areas far from the only abortion clinic still in
operation.

But such findings are irrelevant, according to John Seago,
a legislative assistant who helped write the law. He
argues that the hardships some women face are the result
of abortion providers choosing to close clinics for
financial reasons.

“This is a choice that the abortion industry is making,
specifically, Whole Women’s Health, the plaintive in this
lawsuit,” Seago said. “This is a decision they are making
not to invest the money in complying with the law, but
rather to challenge it in court.”

But David Brown, staff attorney with the Center for
Reproductive Rights, says the law’s provisions impose
medically unnecessary and burdensome requirements on the
clinics.

“Particularly, there are two: there is one that requires
clinics to convert themselves into mini hospitals and
another that requires physicians who provide abortions to
essentially join the staff of a nearby hospital.”

Seago contends that such requirements are similar to those
imposed on clinics that perform plastic surgery or other
elective procedures and the requirement for abortion
doctors to be accepted at a local hospital helps prevent
malpractice.

David Brown, however, says such requirements are
transparent attempts to impede access to abortions in
Texas.

COSTA
RICA
SOLARSOON
with the coming of new power
company regulations, we'll be
installing PV (photo voltaic)
for solar electricity. Yes, at
last!
* PV systems: we use Enphase
micro-inverters. More flexible.
Add panels whenever you like.
More reliable than any other
system and fully guaranteed!

NOW
is the time to install our new
super-efficient solar hot water!
New model for condos

BUY
NOW! Your solar hot water
system, so in three months, we can
calculate a lower install price
for your PV system. Perfect
for homes and hotels. Save up to
40% of your electric bill.

If you are looking for information on
condos, homes, lots, commercial real
estate or development properties our
award-winning team of professional
agents are ready to help you buying
property in Costa Rica. We have
over 18 years of experience to educate
our buyers in all aspects of purchasing
property. Call us or email us today for
more information on how to purchase that
perfect piece of Costa
Rica Real Estate.

Re/Max Ocean Surf and Sun:
The experts in buying
property
in
Costa Rica, with more than 20
years experience and the largest
networked team of agents in the
country. We can help you learn if
investing in Costa Rica is right for you
with our low-key, educational approach
to sales. Our professional agents can
tell you more about sCosta Rica
properties, including condos, homes,
lots and commercial real estate.
Call us: Ocean Surf and Sun Int. Realty
Ldta at 011 (506) 2653-0073 or send us
an email at: info@remax-oceansurf-cr.com

8927-1/28/17

Sierra Collection. Meridian House or
Chateau Montage.
Near Parque Nacional Marino Ballena,
Pacific Coast.
For more i
nformation
Click
HERE!

The
Terraces at San Martin. Discover
the essence of Costa Rica on our
Luxury Ocean View Villas . Near
Dominicalito Beach and Parque Nacional
Marino Ballena.
For more information
Click HERE!

Ellan At
Ballena Beach. Welcome to a
world of endless adventure on our
beachside condominiums at Ballena
Beach, Pacific Coast. For more
information click HERE!

Mafi Real
Estate: Houses, lots and farms in
Costa Rica
If you do not find, what are you looking
for, contact us
WE HAVE A NETWORK OF OVER 500 brokers
across the country to get what you are
looking for.English Calls: Miguel
Fiatt Sauma or Paule
Ortiz
Phone/Fax.+506 2238-5029
Cel. +506 8399-7000
Email: mfiatt@mafirealestate.com
Web Page: www.mafirealestate.com

This house has never
been listed. It is a 3-bedroom,
1-bath home approx. 100 feet above sea
level on the only hill in Jacó one mile
to the beach. Totally remodeled to
a Gringo house.Has great fenced yard for
dogs and a huge screened porch
with great views all around,
including a small ocean view. New
in the last two years includes: new
kitchen with granite counter, cedar
cabinets, all new windows, tile, water
system, updated electric & plumbing,
superb new AC units (low electric bill),
This is half of a duplex with a platted
yard. Other side is the chief of
police. Secure &
private. $169.900. Call Glenn at
506-6214-0056 or goodbuyflorida@yahoo.com.

Charming
small
oceanfront
hotel
for sale in Playa Palo Seco
Ideal oceanfront location with back up
to a mangrove estuary. The
charming small hotel has a fully
equipped kitchen, bar and restaurant and
is exceptionnally well maintained.
Located on a very private beach of the
central Pacific Coast of Costa Rica 35
minutes north of Quepos-Manuel Antonio
and 45 minutes south of Playa
Jacó. The main building is a two-storey
house with 12 bedrooms. The lot measures
3,054 M2. Beautiful gardens around the
large pool and exceptional flora and
fauna. Well mentioned in tourist guides
like Lonely Planet and Guide Ulysse.
Offered at $999,000. USD
e-mail: marietta234@yahoo.es
or call (506) 8707-1037 (506)
2778-8408
Web http://mariettedaignault.point2agent.com

8902-3/4/16

Costa Rica tropical paradise beach
house for sale

Tropical five-acre forested beachfront
property with custom house and guest
casita on the Osa Península, south Pacific
Coast. Abundant wildlife, exotic plants
and fruits, secluded beach. Located
8 kms. south of Puerto Jiménez on the way
to Matapalo and Corcovado National Park.
Great Price $750,000. Contact Roger. Phone
number (506) 6142-7228
Email: osaroger@gmail.com.
Watch this
video for full details.

8898-xxxx

Mountain
home w/million dollar view near San
Ramón
Beautiful home in the mountains near San
Ramón with 180-degree view of the gulf
of Nicoya. 7 miles from San Ramón, 1
mile from Interamericana highway. 3,200
foot elevation so temp is 65 to 75 year
around. Electric gate, private drive.
house built in 2010. 2 bedrooms, 1 bath,
appliances included. High-speed internet
installed, Price for sale
$179,000 Contact Mike:
mmpeace@hotmail.com
Check out slide show HERE!

8897-3/2/15

A
beautiful American style suburban
home just reduced.

A
beautiful American style suburban home,
2,700 sq ft of living space with 5
bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, front and rear
living rooms, laundry area, kitchen and
small attached library nook, arched
windows and doors and connected
hallways, exotic wood interior ceilings
and trim, tile floors thru-out.
The lot is 835 m2 with mature landscape
and orchid nurseries surrounding the
house. There is an enclosed workshop and
BBQ area in the back yard with lots of
storage under roof, plus a nursery for
an herb/vegetable garden. This is
a very well-kept property with many
upgrades, a private feel but yet only 5
minutes from the center of town.
Pérez Zeledón is the commercial hub of
the southern zone and considered to be
one of the best places to live in all of
Costa Rica, the perfect size town, not
too big and not too small. The
beach is 45 minutes to the west and a
short drive to the cool mountains is to
the east. In between, this large valley
has a moderate climate. Pérez has
plenty of modern goods and services, an
excellent farmers market, private
schools, private doctors and clinics,
all you need without having to go to the
crazy madness of San
José. Just reduced to
$199,000. Call Jeff:
8725-8176. Email: angelsdad@me.com

Business
for
sale
or lease (paid
category)Live the dream!
Several profitable businesses, including a
regional radio station, are for sale in Costa
Rica. Certain purchases can provide the new owner
with residency as well as a great lifestyle. So
live your dream while making a profit. Contact: manager@crbusiness.biz.

The Banda de Conciertos de Guanacaste plans
an open house Sunday at 6 p.m. at this, its new
headquarters in Liberia. There will be a concert
and festival activities. The new location is on
the north side of the Liberia fire station.

Housing bond properties to be restricted

By the A.M. Costa Rica staff

Lawmakers have passed for the second and final time a bill
that puts more restrictions on homes financed with public
housing bonds issued by the Banco Hipotecario de la
Vivienda.

The bonds are designed so that low-income residents can
purchase homes.

However, some homes have been abandoned and others have
been rented or sold to third parties who may or may not
qualify for the bonds.

The bill says that homeowners must live in the houses for
10 years and cannot mortgage them, rent them or transfer
them without permission. The Registro Nacional would be
empowered to reject filing any sales involving such
property that are not accompanied by official
authorization.

Freak accident claims boy's life

By the A.M. Costa Rica staff

A 15-year-old Cartago boy has died as a result of a freak
accident in Ciudad Colón. The boy was seated
watching a soccer game Saturday and a car parked nearby
began to roll and ended up hitting him.

Judicial police said the cause is under investigation but
there was no one in the car. The youth died Wednesday in
Hospital San Juan de Dios.

Turkey takes step to help tourism sector

By the A.M. Costa Rica wire
services

Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu this week unveiled
a financial package aimed at boosting the country's
flagging tourism industry, including an $87 million grant
and a facility to allow tourism firms to restructure debt.

Turkey's tourism, the lifeline of the country's fragile
economy, is facing one of its most difficult years because
of multiple security threats.

Turkey is especially popular with German tourists, but has
seen bookings fall after a suicide bomber killed 12
Germans in Istanbul in January.

Meanwhile, Moscow has told Russians not to travel to
Turkey after a Turkish fighter jet shot down a Russian
warplane along the Turkish-Syrian border last October. And
now, a Kurdish rebel group is warning tourists not to
visit Turkey.

One of Europe's largest travel companies reports that
bookings to Turkey are down 40 percent.

The
contents
of
this Web site are copyrighted by Consultantes Río
Colorado S.A. 2016 and may not be reproduced anywhere
without permission.Abstracts
and fair use are permitted. Check HERE for details

From Page 7:

Global digital trade reported to be
soaring

By the A.M. Costa Rica
wire services

The flow of digital goods and services across
borders is surging globally, while trade in
traditional goods and the flow of international
finance has stopped growing.

That's the conclusion of a new study by the
McKinsey Global Institute, which said this huge
change offers both opportunities and risks for
companies and countries, particularly small ones.

At a presentation at the New America Foundation in
Washington, McKinsey experts said the destination
of trade, as well as the content, is changing. For
the first time in history, emerging economies
participate in more than half of global trade. The
study also shows that trade between Southern
Hemisphere developing nations is the
fastest-growing connection.

Some 900 million people have international
connections on social media and 360 million take
part in cross-border e-commerce.

The report says small businesses around the world
can now use platforms like eBay, Amazon, Alibaba,
and Facebook to connect with customers and
suppliers in other nations, becoming
micro-multinationals.

Digitalization is cutting the cost and complexity
of international transactions, allowing small and
medium-sized firms to reach customers and reap
profits that were once the province of huge firms
from developed nations.

The authors argue that companies and nations
cannot afford to ignore the opportunities beyond
their own borders.

Experts at the presentation also warned that the
flow of digital goods and information that brings
these benefits faces threats as some nations try
to censor content, demand that data be stored
locally or otherwise block the flow of
information, searches, video, and other
communications.

This disruptive technology has a downside for
established companies that may see new types of
competitors emerge quickly from anywhere in the
world. And companies that enter new markets
hunting for customers and profit are also exposed
to aggressive global competition, pressures to cut
prices, and threats from cybercrime.

The same digital communications that help
companies sell products also make it easier for
extremists to offer their ideologies to audiences
around the world.